ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA, U.S. — The American Feed Industry Association (AFIA) in partnership with the Poultry Protein and Fat Council will sponsor the 7th annual Pet Food Conference on Jan. 28, 2014, the first day of the International Production & Processing Expo (IPPE). The conference will be held at the Georgia World Congress Center from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

“We are excited to kick off IPPE with AFIA’s annual Pet Food Conference, which attracts more than 200 participants each year.” said Leah Wilkinson, AFIA director of ingredients, pet food and state affairs. “The seminar covers everything from product claims, marketing and nutrition to regulatory and technical aspects of production and is a great networking opportunity.”

The meeting’s topics will range from updates on the Food Safety Modernization Act, third-party certification programs including AFIA’s Pet Food Manufacturing Facility Certification Program, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Association of American Feed Control Officials as well as a panel discussion on communication and industry best practices. The conference will feature several industry experts discussing topics impacting today’s pet food and pet food ingredient manufacturers including Svetlana Uduslivaia, of Euromonitor International, speaking about domestic and global industry trends. 

New this year, the conference will include a luncheon with guest speakers from Nutra Blend LLC who will discuss the Drive to Feed the World/Chew on This tour as well as consumer outreach messaging. 

The conference registration fee is $60 through Dec. 31. Visit http://www.petfoodconference.com for registration details. For more information on IPPE, visit www.ippexpo.com/.